Little Maiden
by Bun-chan
Summary: Because of an uneasy feeling, Helios has come to the surface of the Earth in search of Mamoru to see if he is doing well. Along his way, he is distracted by a little pink haired girl named Chibi Usa and starts to feel something he never imagined. OLD


Title: Little Maiden Author: Bun-chan/Mochi E-mail: Setting: Infinite arc of the Sailor Moon manga.  
Summary: Because of an uneasy feeling, Helios has come to the surface of the Earth in search of Mamoru to see if he is doing well. Along his way, he is distracted by a little pink haired girl named Chibi Usa and starts to feel something he never imagined he would.  
  
Author's Notes: I guess I should have added this the first time I posted this story. ; "Little Maiden" is a one shot I wrote for a fanfic contest. Thank you for the wonderful reviews and wants of continuation. I'm not sure how to continue this short while keeping it mostly canon, but I might try sometime in the future. For now, this story is still a one shot.  
  
It was warm. So very warm. Warmer than I had imagined it to be. It had been so long since I had come to the surface, the heat was alien to me. Of course, Elysion had its fair share of warm weather but never this unpleasant. And the light! Blinding. Elysion, too, had a beautiful bright glow that reflected from the heavens to the surface of the water, but never this bright. I had forgotten how strong the sun is.  
  
It was the middle of the summer when I had decided to ascend to the surface in search of my reborn prince. Not to seek him out, but to watch him. To ease the unsettling nerves pulsating through my subconscious, to see for my own eyes that he still lived unharmed. Unfortunately, I had forgotten how much the human race had expanded and how terribly warm the weather could be. I found myself crowded between hurrying bodies on a busy Tokyo street with a select few sweat drops tickling the length of my back.  
  
Curse my need of secrecy.  
  
If I could have checked upon my prince without having to explain my identity, I gladly would have. But this wasn't an option (though I had disguised myself as a precaution). Part of my unsettling feeling was being able to feel his emotions and listen to his thoughts more clearly as each day passed since he had met Serenity in his reborn life. I had expected a gradual realization of my presence until he was to become king, but his full awakening started to increase rapidly within the last week.  
  
"This is much too soon," I had said standing in a garden of red roses, a sight I indulged in daily. "Much too early, he is out of synch with Serenity." I began to pace the length of the garden pushing back lengths of my fair hair from my eyes as I went, remembering the dark figure of my prince, a silhouette of his glowing love. Serenity. I could faintly hear the soft crunch of the grass from my tread and ignored the Maenads observing me from behind the pure white pillars surrounding the garden.  
  
"Perhaps…something terrible is to come, thus, speeding his awakening," An image of my prince falling to the ground with a sickening thud entered and left my mind as quickly as it had come. It was then I had made my decision to observe him and quickly made my way out of the garden to make arrangements for my departure.  
  
"Perhaps this was a bad idea," I mumbled to myself making my way to the nearest building wall to cease being trampled on, beads of sweat continued to pour from the base of my hair line. I had already rolled up the sleeves of the white dress shirt I had mistakenly chosen to wear, the only bit of clothing I could manage to alter to allow my skin to breathe. "It almost seems hopeless…"  
  
"What seems hopeless?" piped a bell like voice seeming to come from a spot on the wall near my navel.  
  
My eyes immediately traveled down the length of the wall only to be greeted with a mass amount of pastel pink hair curled and tucked in a most unusual way. Two large crimson eyes looked up at me on a round peach face framed with bits of curls. Her hands and arms were folded neatly behind her body that leaned on the wall in fashion similar to my own. "Nothing," I finally managed to say only to realize that that was quite the wrong thing to say, indicating from the child's delicate pink brows pushing down into a glare.  
  
"Then you shouldn't say such things unless they're true," she lectured with much conviction in her eleven year old voice. "Real hopelessness isn't something to take lightly."  
  
If I hadn't felt admiration for her spark, I might have laughed. "You speak as if you've lived for many years, young one."  
  
At this, the fiery girl crossed her arms in front of her chest and closed her eyes in, what seemed to be, heavy concentration. "I'm not that young…"  
  
"Eleven is fairly young, it is the age you look to be," I replied with a gentle smile.  
  
"You'd be surprised," she answered, a small smile creeping onto her face and her eyes glowing as if they were laughing. "Hey!" she cried jumping in front of me and throwing her hands to the sides of her hips, "You look only fourteen and that's not much older than what you think I look!"  
  
I felt my smile spread into a grin, "You'd be surprised."  
  
From there I found myself walking beside my new companion as she eagerly pointed out various locations for me in, what she says, the Tenth Street district. Most of the time her voice was joyous, whether it be from the memories or being able to give me a private and "insightful" tour, or perhaps both. But at times her expression went sour and her voice puckered, usually when she said "Usagi".  
  
"Who is this Usagi you seem not to care for so much?" I inquired as we left the streets of Tokyo and entered a lush park, she called it "Ichinohashi Park".  
  
The girl whipped her head suddenly, as if shocked by my words, then quickly returned to her lemon eating expression. "It's not that I don't care for Usagi, she's just…very stupid."  
  
"Is she?"  
  
"Yes," she answered with a swift and vigorous nod of her head, large curls bouncing well afterwards. "She acts like a child, especially when she's jealous."  
  
"Does she always act that way?"  
  
"Well…no…" she said slowly looking at me from the corner of her eyes. "Usagi is a very happy person and she makes many people happy." The girl smiled turning her gaze up to the sky. "She's very caring and understanding when she isn't trying to steal my snacks and teasing me!" she abruptly stopped walking and clenched her fists at the very thought.  
  
"Ah…" was all I could manage to say as the child regained her composure. I could feel my heart skip a beat from that small example of rage, could I actually be afraid of this little girl? But that passion she…I quickly shook my head avoiding all other thought.  
  
"Is there something wrong again…uhm…" the girl began to mumble with the most puzzled expression. Before I could answer, she began to speak again. "I'm sorry, I didn't introduce myself," she smiled apologetically.  
  
"My name is Chibi Usa," Chibi Usa introduced with a gracious bow; I couldn't keep myself from smiling.  
  
"It is nice to meet you, Chibi Usa." I said while returning the bow. Several minutes of silence followed after her introduction, her face turned up to me with an expecting look on her face. I felt my body rivet with nerves, a feeling I wasn't that accustomed to in the long years I had spent at the Earth's core. But even when I did feel this uneasy sensation, never had I shown outward signs to something as harmless as this little girl.  
  
"Well?" Chibi Usa asked crossing her arms in front of her body.  
  
"Well…?" I answered back, unaware that I was gripping the sleeves of my white button down shirt quite tightly.  
  
"Well, what's your name?" She asked with the most exasperated tone, her head tilted to the side.  
  
"Ah…" I felt my body stiffen, what was I to tell her? I could tell her my actual name, but did I want to risk even the possible chance of being exposed? Not that being at the surface didn't pose some risk, but all the same… "Mamoru, my name is Mamoru," I finally answered remembering that is my prince's new name.  
  
"Really?" Chibi Usa remarked in happy surprise. "That's the name of my boyfriend!"  
  
I felt my heart sink, "Your boyfriend?"  
  
"Actually…" She began looking a little embarrassed, "Mamoru is Usagi's boyfriend. I tell people he's mine because it makes her jealous." She turned her head until she could only see me from the corner of her eye trying to cover the flush tinting her cheeks.  
  
I felt my heart return with a more exuberant pulse, "I see."  
  
"If she didn't act so ungrateful sometimes, I wouldn't have to tell people such things," Chibi Usa tried to justify, mostly trying to convince herself than me. "Mamoru is a wonderful person and very protective, Usagi is lucky to have him."  
  
"Do you wish he was yours?" I asked since I hadn't been able to see her expression, only the top of her head since she had chosen to sit down on a nearby bench.  
  
"Me? No," Chibi Usa answered with a giggle while moving farther down the bench. "Mamoru isn't the one for me."  
  
I slowly sat down next to her, unsure of my hesitation from trying to sit next to her. She's just a child after all. "Who is the one for you, then?" I inquired in all the normalcy I could obtain within myself.  
  
"My prince," she answered whimsically. "What bout you, Mamoru?"  
  
"I- I haven't really thought about it," I replied leaning against the back of the bench.  
  
"Oh, well, that makes sense," Chibi Usa nodded turning towards me.  
  
I felt myself tense a bit from her words; did she think I wasn't worthy of finding someone? "What do you mean?"  
  
"Well, you are a boy. It just seems like a girlish thing to think about," She answered matter-of-factly.  
  
"Oh, that's true…" I agreed while mentally kicking myself for feeling defensive. I tried my best to calm my ridiculous emotions as Chibi Usa spoke more of Usagi, Mamoru, and Usagi's friends. She spoke fondly of a girl named Hotaru and an elder woman named Setsuna. She told me stories of her adventures with her classmate Momoko and even her childhood of loneliness in hushed whispers. All I could do was sit back and listen; I could never share my life stories with her, no matter how much I wanted to at that very moment.  
  
"Well Mamoru, what about you?" Chibi Usa asked, the one question I had hoped to avoid on my whole journey on the surface. Actually, I had planned on avoiding all human contact period. "Tell me about yourself."  
  
"Well…" I began, my brain buzzing with the intensity of finding an answer to evade her question quickly. Fortunately, I didn't need to say anything for Chibi Usa was distracted by another matter entirely.  
  
Unfortunately, that matter was a monster now ravaging the park.  
  
"Mamoru! You need to get away from the park!" Chibi Usa exclaimed jumping up from the bench, my arm grasped firmly in her hand.  
  
"Ah, yes," I answered shifting my eyes away from the monster, originally a schoolgirl, attacking her friends. I got up from the bench, grabbed Chibi Usa's hand, and began to move away but was pulled back from the resistance from Chibi Usa trying to go the other direction.  
  
"I, uh, need to…go this way! But you should really go that way!" Chibi Usa stumbled letting go of my hand and pointing to my original destination out of the park. "Hurry Mamoru! You need to get away!" She insisted while running in the opposite direction before I could question her.  
  
"It's too dangerous for her to be running away on her own," I muttered to myself chasing after her.  
  
She didn't run for long. In fact, she ran in a neat little circle back to the monster and positioned herself behind a bush. Before I could run up to her, or even call out to her, she took out a small object from her skirt pocket. "Moon Prism Power!" I heard her shout as a bright pink light engulfed her small body.  
  
"Make up!"  
  
In a blink of an eye, a girl dressed in pink with an ornate costume took the place of Chibi Usa.  
  
My mind completely blanked as I watched her dash out from behind the bush and strike a pose at the monster. A Sailor Soldier, before my very eyes. Not merely because this tiny girl is a Sailor Soldier, but because I didn't recognize her and I knew of every soldier within this solar system. Also, I had spent a great deal of time beside her and hadn't felt a single pulse of power from within her body. Are my senses failing me? Am I not suited to be High Priest?  
  
But now that Chibi Usa had transformed, a wave of pure power rushed from her very soul. There was something familiar about the power she possessed, so familiar that it sent chills up my spine, but I couldn't figure out what.  
  
"Monster! You will not harm the people in this park!" a transformed Chibi Usa proclaimed pointing at the looming mass of certain destruction. "For I am Sailor Chibi Moon and I certainly won't let you!"  
  
"Chibi Moon…" I muttered to myself as I watched the little pink soldier whip out a sparkling rod. "Moon…"  
  
"Pink Sugar Heart Attack!" Chibi Moon yelled sending blasts of colored energy at her opponent.  
  
And then it hit me as the energy propelled itself at the monster. "This power…of the Moon!" I whispered to myself frantically, "Her power and soul bearing similarity to Serenity!" Damn, Helios, you've spent the day with the relative of your prince's lover.  
  
The monster's arm expanded and met the energy from Chibi Moon in the middle of them. Like swatting a persistent fly, the monster deflected all of Chibi Moon's attacks. "Chibi Usa!" I yelled as I watched her drop to one knee, her energy drained from sending so many attacks.  
  
"Wha- Mamoru!" She cried, her head whipping around so fast that her curls bounced off her glistening face. "Why are you here?"  
  
Before I could give her a proper answer, the monster turned toward me and began to advance. I could easily deflect the monster, however, Chibi Usa would notice the power I poses. Certain that she is related to Serenity, I would reveal myself if I did anything but move out of the way. "Mamoru! Run away!" Chibi Moon cried again, this time trying to get up in hopes of a vain attempt of attacking the monster.  
  
"Chibi Usa," I replied looking back at her, fear had crept into her beautiful cinnamon eyes. The fear tugged a bit at my heart.  
  
"Sparkling Wide Pressure!" A disc of thunder roared in front of the monster, stopping it in its tracks.  
  
"Chibi Moon!" A high-pitched girlish voice hollered from a newly arrived Sailor Soldier dressed in red and dark blue, her golden hair streamed behind her as she ran to Chibi Moon's side.  
  
"Sailor Moon," Chibi Moon smiled as Sailor Moon helped her up.  
  
"Are you okay, Chibi Moon?" A long, black haired soldier asked, this one I recognized as Sailor Mars.  
  
"I'm fine," she assured turning towards the fire soldier. "But Mamoru-"  
  
"That boy?" a golden dressed blonde, Venus, inquired pointing at me. Chibi Moon nodded. "No problem!"  
  
With that, Venus tumbled around the monster as the green clad soldier, Jupiter, sent another disc of thunder at the monster. "Stay behind me, Mamoru," Venus instructed as she turned to face the monster. "I don't want to be the one to make Chibi Moon sad." A laugh seemed to flow from her voice as she took a fighter's stance.  
  
"This monster seems weak compared to others we have fought," the last of the five soldiers, undoubtedly Mercury, observed standing next to Sailor Moon.  
  
"Which means it's actually human, right Mercury?" a deep male voice concluded watching the monster with much concern.  
  
"Endymion," I whispered watching my prince push his crimson lined cape behind him. I felt my body tighten from disbelief, my prince standing before my very eyes in a situation I wish had never happened. Certainly, I would have to reveal myself if they needed me. Not only to save Enydmion and Serenity, but to save Chibi Usa as well.  
  
"Then we will save them," Sailor Moon replied bringing forth her own rod. Jupiter Venus quickly stepped out of the way, Venus dragging me along, as Sailor Moon pointed the heart adorned rod at the monster. "Moon Spiral Heat Attack!"  
  
A blast of raw, purifying energy smashed through the monster. A scream of agonizing pain issued from the jagged mouth of the monster before evaporating and leaving the uninhabited schoolgirl lying on the grass.  
  
"Chibi Moon," Mars said looking down at the pink soldier, "Perhaps you should talk to Mamoru."  
  
"Quickly though," Moon reminded lowering her rod, "We need to leave before people start to arrive."  
  
"I know," Chibi Moon huffed walking away from the two soldiers, Moon with a nasty expression on her face. Surely, the Usagi Chibi Usa spoke must be Sailor Moon, Serenity.  
  
As Chibi Moon made her way towards me, Venus turned around and patted me on the shoulder. She gave a small wink from her light blue eye before bouncing away to join the regrouping Sailor Soldiers. I could feel a small blush sweeping my cheeks, could Venus possibly know?  
  
"Mamoru," Chibi Moon piped tearing my eyes away from the smiling Venus.  
  
"Yes Chibi Usa?"  
  
"Please forget that Chibi Moon and I are the same person," she requested clasping her hands in front of her chest.  
  
"As you wish," I replied, her spreading smile creating one of my own.  
  
"But we will meet again! I'm sure of it!" Chibi Moon smiled throwing her hands up in the air before turning and running back to the other soldiers. "Bye Mamoru! I'll see you soon!"  
  
"We will meet again," I said to myself, Chibi Moon disappearing with the rest of the soldiers and my prince. Her smile still beaming at me, even after she had left. "Soon…in your dreams," I added knowing I could never meet her again until the Prince had awakened, a matter that shouldn't happen until much later. A felt a small ping of pain as I acknowledged that last bit of thought.  
  
"Little Maiden." 


End file.
